This biography is unusual for the detail of intimate information. Though composed by London's wife, it is not completely accurate. For example, it rewrites his origins by making John London his father, and underplays the role of the African American Prentiss family in his upbringing. It is fascinating for its inclusion of original letters and accounts of episodes in JL's early life that were likely as told by him to Charmian, thus somewhat hyperbolic. She admitted it wasn't a definitive biography, yet it has a lot of worthwhile information nonetheless. Read with a critical eye.